this just in!

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!!

this just in!

we have a DISHWASHER!!!!

oh yes!  isn't she lovely?!?

thanks to the hard work and dedication of my amazing husband, i can now move back into my kitchen!  i can actually make a meal and not have to wash the dishes by hand.

HALLELUJAH!  HALLELUJAH!

thank you shauny!  you. are. the. best.

in other less exciting news...

~ actually, none of this may be exciting to you...sorry...~

C's cala lily has bloomed!

when C was born, my aunt and uncle sent this lily to the hospital.  i loved the idea of getting a flower that you could replant, so, i did.  then, last may we sold our house and moved into this one.  the lily was starting to grow at our old house, (from where we had planted it the fall before), and i couldn't bear to leave it.  so the hubs dug it up for me and we planted at the new house.  it didn't really do much last year.  it was just green.

then yesterday, i saw a flower!  C's lily is alive and blooming this year!

eventually i'm going to have to find a better spot for her.  we just randomly stuck her somewhere because by the time we got everything loaded into the new house and were trying to get settled in, i kind of forgot about her.  when i remembered, i was afraid she had been out of the ground for too long, so we just stuck her in a random spot.

now that she is doing so well, she will get a proper planting this fall!

well, that's if for the exciting news today. 

i'm off for the next 4 days, but again, that's probably only exciting for me!

have a good thursday friends!

weekend at the farm and a sneak peak

i'm not doing a very good job with catchy titles lately.  oh well...

we had a great weekend at the farm!  this is my families farm and it honestly hasn't changed much in my 30 years of life.  it's all the same.  the same scenery, the same smells, the same barns.  this is one place that i know will be exactly the same as the last time i left it.  i like that kind of familiarity.

i can't tell you how much it means to me to take C here.  to watch her run around and discover new things.



to see the look on her face when a herd of cattle approach the truck, and to hear her say "baby cows!  baby cows!" over and over again with such excitement.

and to see my grandmother laugh and enjoy her company is wonderful as well.  all of the cattle where back in the woods grazing and growing this visit.  i really wanted C to be able to see some, so shaun, C and i loaded up in the truck.  then my mom and ma-maw decided they would join us.  as we were driving back, my grandmother said she hadn't been back in the woods since my poppa died.  10 years.  i'm so thankful that our little C is bringing more life back into this place.

 we also discovered that our C is a little bit country mixed with a little bit diva.

 she loved it up there!  she kept saying "caroline's tractor".  oh really?  not sure where we will park it baby girl...

the weekend we great.  just what we needed.  the hubs and i got to sleep in on saturday morning when gran jan scooped C out of bed around 7.  and we all got to take a nap!  that's big for the cook's.  but, it was what we needed.

sunday brought us back to reality.  a good reality though because monday morning, installation for the cabinets and counter tops started!!  honestly, i'm not sure shaun slept.

so, as the title says - here's a little sneak peak...

i can't even tell you how amazing everything looks!

but, as you can see in the background, we still have A LOT of work to do.  the sink is in place, but no water.  so, a bigger reveal later.  just wanted to keep you with me!  =)

have a good tuesday friends!

last post before the reveal!

yep - this is it.

we are going out of town today and on monday our cabinets and coutertops are being installed!!

AHHHH!!  i'm kind of freaking out - in a good way of course.

the past two nights, shaun has been working hard on the floor.

sometimes, i don't know how he does it.  he kind of turns into a super husband at times like this.  stays up until 2:30 laying tile, wakes up at 7, does more work around the house like mowing the grass, takes the dog on walks and is still able to smile.

i'm proud of you babe. and really impressed.

so, here are the last few pictures before the big reveal.

tile has been laid and grouted!

we still have to wait about 12 hours before we can completely clean it off and seal it, but you get the general idea.  and the picture below gives you an up close of what it will look like cleaned.

cool, huh?  it's porcelain, but has the look of hardwood with a little bit of texture.  looks great with the hardwood floor that runs throughout the rest of our house, but not like we were trying to match. does that make sense?  sorry...

pendant lights will be here today and installed on monday (probably sunday night - he won't be able to wait)

the remaining board and batten will be installed on monday and then painted

we will bring the appliances back in (fridge, range and microwave)

plumbing for the dishwasher

and then....I THINK THAT'S IT!!

no more of this...

and a little correction on the paint color.  it's actually grassland from sherwin williams.  not garden sage.  sorry.

so - there you go.  we are headed to the farm this weekend for a little r & r.  the hubs needs a break and going somewhere with no internet and little cell phone service is just the ticket.

have a good weekend!

day 11 - kitchen reno

not a big update, but i feel like i should check in and let you know things are still running smoothly in the cook household.

only one small incident involving my head and a cedar plank chair rail...  but we're moving on.

let's check some things off the list:

- rip out old nasty cabinets:  CHECK
- knock down wall dividing kitchen & dining room:  CHECK
- tear down soffit:  CHECK
- add new electrical outlets: CHECK
- new recessed lighting & pendants: CHECK
- hook up all new electrical for power: CHECK
- drywall:  CHECK
- paint:  1/2 CHECKED
- board and batten in dining room: 1/2 CHECKED
- new tile on kitchen floor
- new cabinets and countertops
- install new appliances
- install pendant lighting
- run plumbing for the DISHWASHER!!!

so, as you can see we are moving right along.  when is comes to the big things, i think we are making great progress.  i feel great about where we are.  i know shaun wishes the cabinets could have gone in tomorrow, but we would have been killing ourselves for no real reason.  now we have them scheduled to go in next tuesday.  plenty of time to get the tile laid and another coat of paint on the walls.

and, the new tuesday cabinet time-line has made it possible for me to lend a hand as well.  for the most part, i've been on baby duty.  don't get me wrong, hangin' with C is always fun, but i really wanted to contribute something to this renovation as well.  so last night i finally swung a hammer.  that board and batten is mine!

i've been busy with other details though:

- finding a traditional but modern faucet that isn't too overpriced: CHECK
- finding just the right shape of white sink: CHECK
- picking out light fixtures that don't cost a million dollars: CHECK
- finding comfy affordable bar stools with backs: CHECK
- finally deciding on a paint color: CHECK
- convincing shaun that board and batten with work in the dining room: CHECK
- constantly thinking about ways to decorate: DOUBLE CHECK
- painting hutch
- finding curtains/fabric for back door window, window above the sink & dining room window

yesterday i headed to my favorite lunch break spot (TJ Maxx aka TJ's) and walked out with some cute little bowls that are just the right colors and will look so cute on my little bit of open shelving.  i so wish i had more open shelving, but i'm making the best of what i'll get.

so, that's it.  i'll probably take a few more pictures once the tile goes in, but then that might be the end of the reveals.  i want to leave a few surprises for you!  =)

 pretty soon, our little living room picnics will come to an end...

happy daddy's day!

you're spending father's day the same way you have spent everyday this past week.  working hard on our new kitchen.

you're a hard worker, and we are so blessed to be your family.

from the moment you became a daddy, i had no worries you would be amazing.

C is your little princess, and when she calls you "Daddyboi", i know you melt.

you are her hero and she is crazy about you.  she has been from the very beginning.

thank you for leading our family.  for protecting and providing for us.  thank you for being an amazing example to our daughter and for always being there for us both.  she doesn't realize this yet, but i know she will look for the same traits in a husband that she sees in you, her daddy.

you are amazing daddyboi.  WE LOVE YOU very much!!!

kitchen update and wedding pictures

1 week down!  and honestly, i can hardly believe how far we have come.

we headed up to IKEA yesterday and came home to finished walls.  you can't believe what a difference it has made.  we cleaned up all the dust tonight and took down the tarp!

and i came home with a little inspiration from the mother land

our plan is to start painting tomorrow.

i have to be honest - i'm a little stressed about the paint color.  i like what we have picked out, but i'm afraid its too close to what is already on the walls.  shaun keeps telling me it's different.  i guess we'll find out tomorrow. 

yep - he wants to paint on father's day....=(

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

now, some pictures from my brother's wedding.

so many amazing shots.  seriously - it was hard to pick just these.

 

 

this is my favorite shot of the two of them.  amazing and so sweet.

 

aren't the different colored dresses together amazing?!?

my baby's blues

sweet little princess

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

sorry not much of an update, but i'm tired.

i'll let you know about the paint color soon...=)

day 5 - moving right along

it's hard to believe the kitchen renovation has only been going on for 5 days!

on one hand, the refrigerator in the living room and the make-shift kitchen in the office seem like it's been going on too long and i don't look forward to 3 more weeks of this.

making grilled cheese for C on the floor...

on the other hand, things on the other side of the tarp are moving along quicker than i thought and i'm really impressed with the progress.

so, here's a little update in pictures

remember, you can click on any picture to make it bigger.  i'm currently in the process of trying to figure out how to make my pictures bigger without look distorted.  any help would be MUCH appreciated.
*edit - THANK YOU JEN!  pictures are bigger now!!  =)*



i mean - i'm impressed!

drywall is being hung tomorrow, shaun thinks we could be painting by sunday and then the floor!

the cabinets and counter tops are already in and just waiting to be installed.

he is chomping at the bit!

really quick though, lets go back to demo day.

i wanted to show you something kind of cool that they found when ripping out the cabinets

6 records for a penny!

back in 1978, paula mcintosh successfully choose 6 awesome records (3 kiss albums, elvis, tom t. hall greatest hits & linda ronstadt), inserted her 1968 penny and anxiously awaited her records.

unfortunately, it seems this fell behind a cabinet, never to be mailed.

shaun was pretty psyched about this find.

i just feel bad for paula mcintosh...

there was no online tracking in 1978 to find out when your records will arrive. i can just imagine her being 14 yrs. old, excited about this awesome deal and then just waiting and waiting and waiting...

did anyone join BMG music club at that age? those cd's i sent off for where some of my first cds ever. and i couldn't wait to get them in the mail!

poor paula...

OK - moving on

hopefully the next post will reveal even more progress!

my goal now is to pick a paint color.

any suggestions? i want something in the green grayish brown family.

easy, right?

let the craziness begin!

have you been wondering if it started? did we knock down the wall? did we get stuff cleared out? does shaun still have all his toes?

well...

it's gone.

all gone.

except the toes - shaun still has all 10 =)

no more wall, no more cabinets, no more old appliances that don't work, no more soffit (what is that for anyway?).

it's all gone.

saturday morning:

we packed up everything on friday night and set up what we could for a temporary kitchen in the office down the hall.

and saturday by lunch:

saturday morning:

saturday by lunch:

pretty crazy huh?

saturday started early and C and i had no plans to stick around. we headed out, had a starbucks breakfast date and steered clear.

we didn't want to get in anybody's way. and we wanted the boys to go as crazy as they wanted.

i ended up giving the hubs an early father's day present.

he was pretty psyched about it. and as you can tell from the pictures, he put it to good use!

so - we are off to a GREAT start! pretty amazing how much work has gotten finished so far.

this was about 8:30 last night


we still have a long way to go.

but we will keep you updated.

and once i get to come home (hopefully tonight - been staying at my mom's to keep the baby and dog away from demo), i'll be able to upload the real pictures, not just the camera phone ones.

bye bye old kitchen!!



more soon!!